Eukaryotic replication origins: Strength in flexibility

Abstract

The eukaryotic replicative DNA helicase, Mcm2-7, is loaded in inactive form as a double hexameric complex around double-stranded DNA. To ensure that replication origins fire no more than once per S phase, activation of the Mcm2-7 helicase is temporally separated from Mcm2-7 loading in the cell cycle. This 2-step mechanism requires that inactive Mcm2-7… (More)